Home » AFYREN and Südzucker reach long term deal to supply factory producing biobased organic acids

AFYREN and Südzucker reach long term deal to supply factory producing biobased organic acids

23 March 2021

Press release

AFYREN secures procurement of sugar beet co-products, major feedstock for industrial-scale production of its sustainable chemicals

AFYREN and Südzucker have reached an unprecedented long-term agreement on the supply of sugar beet co-products as feedstock for AFYREN NEOXY, the zero-waste, low-carbon biorefinery that will begin producing seven 100% biobased organic acids at industrial scale in early 2022.

The partnership is in accordance with both companies’ sustainability strategies. Using these co-products to produce bio-based organic acids provides a high level of revalorization and does not affect the food chain.

Südzucker, the No. 1 European sugar producer and a leading company in the global food industry, will provide the biorefinery’s supply of sugar beet co-products. The agreement to upcycle these co-products into high-value chemicals that are usually made from petroleum derivatives fits into its commitment to conduct business in a manner that utilizes resources sustainably and the aim of Südzucker to be climate neutral by 2050.

“We align our actions in terms of sustainability across the entire value chain — from the agricultural raw material to the finished products and co-products,” said Michael Schäfer, chief market analyst at Südzucker’s sugar and co-product division. “Customer requirements evolve, and we meet them with innovation and by diversifying our product portfolio across diverse geographic regions and markets.“

For AFYREN, the signing of this multi-year contract marks a major milestone in its business plan. With multiple sugar plants in areas surrounding the AFYREN NEOXY plant in Carling-Saint-Avold, near the French-German border, Südzucker can guarantee supply of this feedstock, allowing AFYREN to focus on its other business goals.

“We’re very pleased with this agreement,” said Nicolas Sordet, CEO of AFYREN. “Getting a long-term deal with an industry leader like Südzucker validates our project and moves it a big step forward. Now we have a guaranteed supply of key feedstock — and an efficient supply chain.”

This partnership is also a major step for the ambitious multi-stakeholder project AFTER-BIOCHEM, led by AFYREN, which aims to make a broad contribution to the development of a strong bioeconomy sector in Europe and turn sustainably sourced non-food biomass into multiple high added-value products.